Discover Scuba Dive in Nusa Penida: what to expect

For those who have never tried diving, and want to give it a go without committing to the whole Open Water Course, there is the Discover Scuba Dive. This is an introductory dive to showcase what diving is and let you have a go in the safe hands of an Instructor! All you need is to be 10 years or over and sign the medical form.

Different dive centers will have various schedules and ways of doing it, but generally, all will have the following program.

The Theory Part

Firstly, there is a small amount of theory to learn before we jump in. This can either be done online via the PADI app or given face-to-face by your Instructor on arrival. The theory will go over:-

• Basic physics about diving including pressure changes and depth, and why this is important when we dive. It will also include how to stay safe when diving.

• The equipment you will wear and how it works. This includes explaining about the jacket we wear (BDC), the thing we breathe from (regulator), and other important items (fins, mask, heavy weights); why they are all important and what we do with them.

• Hand signals we use as divers so we can communicate underwater. This will include, the signals for “OK”, "I have a problem", how to indicate direction, as well as "how much air do you have" and how to say if you are “out-of-air”.

• How to equalize and when we need to do this. This includes the why's and how's of equalizing your ears, but also everywhere that air may be (your mask and your lungs!)

Once you have gone through this theory, there will be a quick quiz to test your knowledge!

The Pool (or confined water) Part

This is a super important part of the Discover Scuba Dive – here is where you actually breathe underwater for the very first time! It may sound easy, but learning to breathe through the regulator whilst underwater, can be quite challenging! This session will get you to have a practice first and learn some skills in a safe place so you can enjoy your ocean dive without the anxiety.

Things you will do in the pool session include:-

• Breathing underwater; first your instructor will have you practice breathe through the regulator with your face underwater. In scuba, we do all our breathing through our mouth, which can take a bit of practice!

• Clearing the regulator. You will learn how to remove the regulator from your mouth, return it and then how to clear it – yes, you can do this all without having to bring your head out the water!

• Recovering your regulator. The next step is to then learn how to find your regulator if you were to drop it. Remember, its attached to your tank, so its just a case of remembering to swing your arm around to catch it and pop it back!

• Clearing your mask.  It is very common for masks to get a bit of water in them during the dive. Whether this is because the fit isn’t right or your smiling too much, it’s a very helpful skill which can cause a bit of anxiety the first time you try!

• Equalizing. You will slowly descend down to the deep end, maybe 3m and practice how and when to equalize. Yes, our ears have air in them and we need to know how to go deep without any damage!

• Swimming. Then comes the fun part; practicing to swim like a diver. This will include how to kick with fins on, not use your arms and practicing being horizontal in the water – its not as easy as it sounds!

• Entry. You will learn how to do a deep water entry, commonly this will be a giant stride – a key part and how we jump in safely!

The Ocean Part

By now, having learned the basic theory and had a bit of practice in the pool, you’ll be ready for a real dive - and hopefully super excited too!

Time for a real dive

In the PADI Discover Scuba Dive you can go to a maximum of 12m (40ft)!

• Your instructor will first give you a dive briefing explaining how you will enter the water, remind you of the hand signals you might use, remind you of the skills you learned in the pool. They will also tell you where you will go, for how long and how the dive will end.

• The whole time you are in the water, your Instructor will be with you, either holding onto you gently (yes, you can hold our hand) or just to your side or in front of you, keeping you safe and watching you the whole time. There are no skills to do, just time for you to enjoy your dive and watch the fishies!

• Generally, dives are always limited to a maximum time of 1 hour. But more importantly, the length of the dive will depend on how fast you breathe through your air - as a first timer this is usually around 30-40 mins.

After you’ve done the dive, you will be given a certification of participation. This is not a dive certification, (for that you would need to do the Open Water Diver course), but you can stick it proudly to your fridge!